


Plan B

by PassionWriter



Category: Outlander & Related Fandoms, Outlander (TV), Outlander Series - Diana Gabaldon
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-13
Updated: 2021-01-29
Packaged: 2021-03-05 04:06:47
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 23,125
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25218223
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PassionWriter/pseuds/PassionWriter
Summary: When Jamie takes Claire back to the stones they have gone dormant.
Relationships: Claire Beauchamp & Jamie Fraser, Claire Beauchamp/Jamie Fraser
Comments: 95
Kudos: 226





	1. Chapter 1

After a last passionate moment together on the wet grass at the base of the traveling stone atop Craigh Na Dun, they whispered their words of love and goodbye.

"I love you, Jamie"

"And I, love you."

He turned her in his arms so that her back was pressed to his chest and she was facing the stone. Facing her future without him by her side, to scold and protect her with all the love he held for her.

He raised their joined hands as they stepped closer, then when their hands were only a hair's breadth away from the stone, he pressed her hand forward and allowed his hand to fall back away from hers. 

She closed her eyes as her fingertips reached out to graze against the cold granite, dreading the moment that the stone would pull her in. Fearing the agonizing pain of being ripped apart and put forcefully back together as the deafening sounds of lost screaming souls invaded all of her senses. But when none of that happened she opened one eye and peeked around, nothing had changed. Jamie's arm was still wrapped securely around her waist, while her hand was pressed to the stone. She opened the other eye, tipped her head back, and peered up at the stone and realized that there was no buzzing sound. She had not realized it before, thinking that the frantic pounding of her own heart had drowned out the song of the stones. But now her heart had slowed and she could listen. The air was still, and filled only with the sounds of birdsong. 

She realized that the stones were no longer calling to her and she suddenly felt anger, relief, and fear all mingled together. The realization of what had or rather had not happened caused a gasp to escape her lips. The sound caused Jamie to jerk, his eyes had apparently been closed at the last moment to avoid watching her disappear from his arms and life forever. 

He looked at the precious woman still held in his arms, then his gaze moved up to her hand which was still pressed firmly against the granite stone. "Sassenach, what's wrong, why have ye no' left yet?"

She turned her head to peer back at him over her shoulder, "I don't know, the stones aren't calling to me, I can't hear them."

Jamie gaped at her as if he didn't understand a single word coming out of her mouth, "What do ye mean that ye canna hear them, ye must. Ye must go back, ye must go back to yer time, to a man who will care for ye and keep ye safe."

Claire lowered her hand and turned fully in his arms. She cradled his face in her hands and gazed directly into those beautiful eyes that she loved so much, "Jamie, I don't think I can, I don't think I have a choice to go back. The future no longer matters and I couldn't go back, even if I wanted to. We must come up with another plan." 

Jamie nodded.

"You will not send me away and go and sacrifice yourself on the bloody moor for that fool of a Prince who will not listen to reason. You will listen to me now, James Fraser, and do as I say, do you understand me? I am done with your bloody honor and your need to save everyone. We are going to do this my way from now on, do you hear me?"

Jamie gazed at her, still in shock at the situation they currently found themselves in, "Aye, I hear ye. Since ye are the one callin' the shots now, what do we do?"

She thought for a moment, never releasing her grasp on his face, "Well, we can't go back to Lallybroch, we are both too well known and wanted. Going back would only bring more trouble and negative attention to your family from the British army. I know from history books that the final battle only lasts about 15 minutes and from the sound of the cannon blast moments ago, I would say it is well underway. We need to find a place to hide, a place far enough away that the soldiers won't find us when they go searching for survivors."

Jamie nodded in agreement, "Aye, I think yer right about that, but where will we go that is safe enough. We dinna have any provisions wi' us, so we canna travel far."

Claire moved her hands to his shoulders and gave them a gentle squeeze, "We don't need provisions. You, my dear lad, are a bloody highland warrior and I grew up traipsing about the world with my uncle Lamb sleeping under the stars and scrounging for food where ever we could find it. We can and we will survive this, even if it means sleeping under the stars for the rest of our lives."

Jamie shook his head in disagreement, his hand coming to rest on Claire's still flat stomach, "No' wi' a bairn on the way, we canna. Ye need a bed and the comfort of a home, I'll no' have my pregnant wife sleeping on the moor under a tree come winter."

Claire smiled mischievously, "I don't think it will take that long to formulate a better plan. Besides, while a nice warm comfortable bed does sound pleasing, I would much rather be with you, be it under the stars on a glorious beach or in the mud, tucked into a dark cave. Your choice has been made for you James Fraser, you can't send me back, you are stuck with me for the rest of your life, whether you like it or not."

Jamie hugged her tighter to his chest, buried his face in the curls at the crook of her neck and mumbled into her hair, "As ye say, mo ghráidh. I ken Scotland like the back of my hand, there are one or two places that will suffice for now. But we canna stay there forever, we will need to come up wi' a better plan and soon. Traveling willna be as easy for ye as the bairn grows, we need to be settled before the bairn comes. But for tonight, I think we will be safe enough in the abandoned cottage, at least for a few hours. Then in the morning, before first light, we will head north and go as far as we can before we need rest."

Claire grinned and kissed him on the tip of the chin, "Good, now that we have that settled, let's see if we can find something to eat."

Jamie chuckled at his wife's sudden change of topic, "Aye, we shall eat soon enough, but for now, I think perhaps it would be wise to move as far away from the battle as we can while the army is engaged. Come, let's go find the horse and ride far away from this place, it no longer has a hold on either of us."

Claire let her arms fall away from Jamie as he released his hold on her waist and took her by the hand, leading her carefully back down the slope to where they had left the horse. 

Jamie carefully scanned the surrounding landscape with each step they took away from the standing stones atop the hill of Craigh Na Dun. Even though he no longer had the option of sending Claire away to the safety of her time in the 20th century, he wasn't about to lead her back into harm's way out of overconfidence in their safety. With Claire carrying another of his bairns beneath her heart, he would be the ever vigilant husband and father to see her and the child safe, no matter the cost to his own life or well being.

Luckily they made it back to the bottom of the hill with nary a soldier in sight. Jamie recaptured Donas from nibbling at the tall grass near the stream and helped Claire to mount up on the large black beast. Jamie again scanned the area, while simultaneously contemplating the best route to take to carry them away from the battle. He mounted up behind Claire, turned his horse's head due west toward Beauly. They would take the simplest route to get as far away as fast as they could to avoid capture. They would first head toward Beauly, but remain on the outskirts of the village and have as little human contact as possible. Once there, they would turn north and head toward Lairg. Jamie knew of a well hidden cave in the forest above Loch Shin where they could hide for at least a week undiscovered.

They reached the outskirts of Beauly just before the noon hour, Jamie didn't want to stop but Claire's bladder had other ideas. He chose a familiar wildlife path to ride deep into the forest and away from prying eyes. They would rest there for a bit before continuing on their journey northward. They dismounted near a small stream and set to work. Each completing different tasks, yet working together effortlessly. Claire walked into the woods a bit to relieve herself and gather firewood, while Jamie walked along the stream until he found a fairly deep pool that contained a good number of fish.

As Jamie was lying on his belly next to the stream waiting to tickle a fish or two, Claire set to work building a small fire to cook their meal on. Finally, after spending so much time in the 18th century she had remembered her uncle teaching her how to build a bow drill. She used this method to start their campfire, with minimal effort and time. She was blowing on a few glowing embers as Jamie strode up next to her with two large trout hooked through the gills on his index finger. 

Claire carefully placed the embers near the bottom of her fire and slowly placed bits of Usnea filipendula or old man's beard onto the embers, then topping that with small twigs to get the fire going before adding large chunks of wood. While she was doing that, Jamie had begun to gut the fish and place them on spikes to cook over the fire. 

When they were finished with their lunch, they decided that a short nap was in order to allow not only the horse a bit of reprieve from the long journey but to also rest their road weary eyes. 

Jamie sat on the ground near a large tree and leaned back, using the massive tree trunk as a backstop. He leaned his head back against the tree and watched silently as Claire smoored the fire then came to sit down between his legs. She leaned back against his chest, her head resting against his shoulder and her hand wrapped around his raised knees. 

Jamie listened as her breathing reached a shallow, steady rhythm, indicating that she had already fallen asleep. Thinking back to when she was pregnant with Faith, Jamie couldn't remember her being this tired this early on. But he rightfully wouldn't remember that since he wasn't with her during that time, but instead locked up in Wentworth prison awaiting the unscrupulous torture at the hands of Black Jack Randall.

He shook the unpleasant memory from his mind and refocused his attention on his wife, stroking her hair as she rested against him. Before long, her presence had calmed him and he closed his eyes to join her in rest. 

Claire was the first to wake about 2 hours later when her bladder felt like it might burst if she didn't get up and relieve herself soon. She attempted to untangle from Jamie's grasp without waking him, but he had his arm wrapped around across her chest and holding her tight to him. He had rested his chin on the top of her head before he fell asleep and she knew there was no way that she could move without waking him. She began stroking her hands up and down his shins and whispering his name. He woke easily, a smile spreading across his face at her gently touch, "Aye, Sassenach, I'm awake. What is it, lass?"

She cleared her throat, feeling a bit shy, never having to ask to be released to use the bathroom before, "My bladder is about to burst, I need you to release me so I can go into the woods to relieve myself."

Jamie chuckled, squeezed her against him, placed a kiss at her temple then removed his arm from around her, allowing her to rise to her feet and disappear behind some bushes. When she returned, Jamie was readying Donas for the next leg of their journey. She hadn't yet asked him where exactly they were going, but he clearly had at least part of a plan in mind and she wasn't going to question him on it. 

As they mounted up, Jamie told her where they were headed next, "There is a cave in the foothills near Loch Shin that we can hide in for a time. Tis big enough that Donas can fit inside wi' us. But is near two days ride from here, and we must stop along the way to make camp. I dinna wish to be traveling all night long. It will be to difficult to keep my wits about me if we dinna stop to rest tonight.

They rode at a steady clip until just after dusk, barely making it to a tiny village which Jamie said was called Swordale. The village was surrounded on all sides by the thick forest, so neither the British army nor the Jacobite army were likely to travel that far into the deep woods. They would be relatively safe for the night in the little inn after renting a room under the nom de guerres, Malcolm and Elizabeth MacTavish. They stabled Donas at the back of the inn and paid for a room for one night. Neither Jamie nor Claire had the energy to do anything save sleep when they made it up to their room. They fell into bed, wrapped in each other's arms, still fully clothed and worn weary to the bone. They both fell asleep without a second thought as soon as their heads hit the pillow. They would continue their trek toward Lairg in the morning after a full night's rest in a real bed.

They were awoken quite early the next morning by an insistent tapping on their chamber door and the innkeeper whispering, "Mr. Mactavish, please ye must wake up, I must speak wi' ye right away."

Jamie rubbed his eyes, rolled over, and nearly fell out of bed as he got up. He cast a glance back at Claire, who was still sleeping peacefully, curled up like a wee shrimp and cocooned in the quilt. He walked quietly over and opened the door just a crack to find out what the bothersome innkeeper wanted at such an ungodly hour. Jamie poked his head out, "What is it man, we are tryin' to sleep in here?"

The innkeeper bowed slightly, "I apologize for the intrusion Mr. MacTavish, but I thought ye would like to ken, well since ye resemble the infamous Red Jamie so much, ye might want to get away while ye can."

Jamie huffed, "Ken what, out wi' it already."

The innkeeper clutched his hat in his hands tightly, ringing it and overall destroying the appearance of it, "I just thought ye might like to ken that there are soldiers in the village looking for Jacobite sympathizers, ye and yer wife must leave now if ye dinna wish to be arrested. Ye can go out the back and straight to the stables. There is an old game trail leading directly away from the gate. Ye can get up into the forest rather quickly and hide yer tracks. They willna ken to look there for ye."

In the time it had taken the innkeeper to relay this information to Jamie, Claire had woken up and come to stand directly behind her husband, overhearing every word said. She took a silent step back and waited as Jamie thanked the innkeeper and closed the door. "Well, I suppose that means it time for us to go. Will we reach the cave today or will we be stopping somewhere along the way to rest?"

Jamie turned away from the closed door to look at her, taking in the beauty standing before him. He noticed her skin was still beautifully flushed from sleep and he couldn't resist the urge to reach out and caress her cheek. "Aye, we should go, I dinna ken how far we will get, but we likely willna reach the cave until deep into the night."

Claire reached up to hold his hand against her cheek and gaze directly into his loving eyes, "Well then I think the sooner we leave the better. But I think perhaps you should wear a cap, your flaming red hair is a dead giveaway to who you truly are, and until we can outrun the reach of the English we need to take every precaution available to us."

Jamie took a step closer to her, gripping her hip with his other hand as he continued to cup her cheek. "Aye, we should. I will see if the innkeeper has one that I could buy off of him when we go downstairs."

Luckily the innkeeper was a proud Jacobite supporter and had heard of Red Jamie and his Sassenach wife. He did have a cap that he was willing to part with at no cost to help aid in their escape. The innkeeper's wife had packed a bag of provisions for them to take with them since they wanted to be gone before the English soldiers had a chance to stumble upon them. Jamie was also able to procure another horse in trade for Claire's gold ring. Two horses would last much longer and they would be able to travel much faster and perhaps arrive at the cave a bit sooner than he had anticipated. 

After leaving Swordale through the forest, they traveled northeast, skirting around the mountains before turning back north. They were determined to create as much distance between them and the English soldiers as their horses could manage, so they only stopped for short breaks to relieve themselves. The provisions that the innkeeper's wife had packed for them, were all easily consumable while still on horseback, so there was no need to stop to eat.

They were only roughly an hour away from Lairg when Jamie spotted movement on the trail behind them. They moved their horses far into the woods and hobbled them, then crawled on their bellies to peer down over a small ridge to try and see who had been coming their way. Claire was startled when Jamie's suddenly chuckled and stood up, revealing their hiding place in the underbrush.

She peered up at him from the ground, a scowl on her face and hissed, "What the hell are you doing, do you want whoever it is to spot us?"

Jamie looked down at her with a huge grin on his face, "I dinna think ye will mind so much when ye see who it is Sassenach."

She furrowed her brow and returned her attention to the mysterious traveler who was coming even closer to them, likely having already spotted Jamie with his muckle size. She lowered herself even further to the ground, attempting to make herself smaller so as not to be seen. Horrified she watched, unable to move as her husband strode proudly toward the stranger. Then she heard a familiar voice that had her shooting up to her feet in no time, "I thought I would never catch up to the two of ye, where do ye plan to take the lass, Jamie. When ye said to wait for ye on the battlefield because ye needed to get Claire to safety first, I expected ye to be back before the battle began. Tis a lucky thing that I decided to follow ye instead, to make sure that ye were both safe or I likely would have died on that moor wi' all those other poor bastards."

Jamie pulled him into an embrace and patted his back hard, "A goistidh, I canna tell ye how happy it makes me to see ye. I am that glad that ye didna take heed to what I said. Do ye ken if Fergus got away?"

Murtagh returned the hard slap on the back then stepped back to appraise Jamie, "Aye, the lad got away clean. He has likely already made it back to Lallybroch at the pace he was traveling."

Murtagh looked around then as his eyes landed on Claire his expression softened. "There ye are lass, ye decided no' to leave this fool and travel back to yer own time then?"

Claire stepped forward and embraced Murtagh herself, then released him and took a step back to be able to see his face, "Well, to be honest, I never wanted to leave, but I couldn't even if I did. The stones wouldn't work for me and when we realized that, Jamie and I decided to run. That's what we were doing when you surprised us. We haven't formulated a full plan yet, but Jamie mentioned a cave near Lairg where we can figure out exactly where we will go."

Murtagh rubbed his beard, his brow furrowed in thought, then his eyebrows suddenly rose toward his hairline, "Why don't we head to the northern isles, surely the redcoats willna go that far in search of Jacobites."

Claire scrunched up her face and paced back and forth as she thought about what she had learned of the uprising. After a moment she came to a stop, looked back and forth between Jamie and Murtagh who were waiting patiently for whatever she was about to say, "That is brilliant Murtagh, they don't, in fact leave the mainland. We could go to Skye if we wanted, but I think the Northern Isles is a much better plan. We could stay there forever and be safe from everything that the future has in store. We could build a life there without having to constantly look over our shoulders due to a price on our heads. We won't have to fear another redcoat appearing to arrest or kill us."

As her words sank in, Murtagh and Jamie's faces both transformed into looks of elation, matching grins pasted on their faces. Then after a moment, Jamie's expression turned into one of concern, "But what of Lallybroch, Jenny, Ian, Fergus, and the bairns?"

Claire began pacing again, but only for a moment this time, "Once we reach the coast we can write them a letter and tell them of our plans, invite them to join us. They will have to leave Lallybroch behind, basically abandon it, but everyone would be safe. Safe from the English, safe from the clearances, the famine, the rape, and murder. Safe from the banning of the tartans and the Gáidhlig language. We could all live in peace, together, just like we planned before that bloody fool forged your name and forced you to join his pointless war."

Murtagh placed a reassuring hand on Jamie's shoulder, "Aye, tis a good plan Jamie, and if we wait to send the letter until we reach the coast, we can be long gone, before there is any need to worry if a redcoat gets his hands on it."

Jamie nodded, "Aye, tis a good plan, but we will need to be canny about it. I canna verra well use my own name, they will hunt us down, no matter how far we go."

Murtagh squeezed Jamie's shoulder and cleared his throat, "I will write the letter, I am no' kent to the English but Jenny kens my name and will ken that I write on behalf of ye. She will ken the reason why and willna question it. But do ye think the lass will leave Lallybroch, leave the only home she has ever kent?"

Jamie began to pace, "I dinna ken, there is much I need to tell her. She willna trust my reason for leavin' as we have."

Claire sighed, "We should have told them the truth about me, about where I am from. Perhaps if we had, she would trust when we tell her what is to come, but you are right, I'm not so sure just telling her to trust us will be enough to get her to leave behind everything she has ever known."

Jamie stopped his pacing directly in front of Claire, placed his hands on her shoulders, and gave a soft squeeze, "I dinna ken either, but we must try. We have a bit of time before we reach the coast, we will think of something to tell her to convince her that this is for her own good, convince her tis a matter of life and death."

With that matter settled at least for the time being, the three of them mounted up and continued their journey toward Lairg. With a new plan in mind, they would not stay in the cave for a week but press on toward the north shore after taking a few days to rest. 

They arrived at the cave, just after darkness fell upon them. The men hobbled the horses and removed their saddlebags and bedrolls that the innkeeper had given them from the beasts. Jamie created a couple of torches from Old man's beard wrapped tightly with lengths of fabric ripped from Claire's petticoats onto long sticks to light their way. The cave was just as Jamie had described it during their long journey to get there. The entrance was hidden by a natural wall in the stone rockface and upon entering they had to walk down a long passage that resembled the halls at Castle Leoch. They turned a bit of a corner and stepped into a large cavern, the ceiling reaching about 10 foot high and bits of the stary sky could be seen through small openings in the roof of the room. 

They walked around the large room, choosing the best place to sleep, place a fire, and where to put the horses. Claire was left to set up their bedding area while the men went back out into the night to bring the horses in. By the time they got all three horses settled, Claire had not only readied their beds but she had also started a small fire to help keep them warm through the night. The layout of the cave would not allow any light from the fire to escape, making their hiding place a true secret, even with a blazing fire inside. 

After everyone had settled into their beds, Murtagh and Jamie decided to discuss their plans for the rest of their journey to the north. Claire who was bone tired, not only from the exhausting ride but from the energy being drawn from her body to grow the baby inside of her, laid down and fell asleep. 

The men decided that their best option would be to skirt around Loch Shin for a while before going northeast toward the coast. Jamie had decided their best chance at evading the English for the longest time would be to head deep into the Northern Highlands where very few people ventured and even fewer lived, spending very little time in each place as they continued their journey northward. 

Jamie smiled when he realized that Claire would be forced to work on her Gáidhlig when they arrived at their destination since very few people that far north spoke anything other than their mother tongue. It was Jamie's hope that once they reached the coast off of Huna they could pay a fisherman to take them across the sea to the island of Stroma. From there, they could take their time and move from island to island until they would eventually reach the Northern Isles and perhaps settle in Unst, a place where the British army was likely never to venture and where no one would have heard of Red Jamie or the Stuart Witch, let alone recognize either of them. They would be safe if they could make it that far and Jamie, Claire, and Murtagh knew it would take a lot of prayer and hope for their escape to be successful.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the only chapter I have ready for this fic so far, not sure how I am going to get where I want to go with it yet, so updates on this one may take a bit more time than my others. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy it.  
> Feedback and criticism are always welcomed.


	2. Chapter 2

When Jamie woke the next morning and took their horses out to stretch their legs a bit, he was stopped in his tracks as soon as he exited the cave opening. Surprisingly there was a blanket of fresh snow covering the ground as far as the eye could see. Granted they were in the middle of the forest so he couldn't see for miles, but he knew from the overcast sky and the crisp still air, that all of Scotland had been hit with the snowstorm overnight. 

Luckily the stream wasn't far from the cave entrance, so he was able to keep their tracks to a minimum as he took the horses down for a drink of water. As he was bent at the stream, filling his flask he heard Murtagh's shocked voice behind him, near the mouth of the cave, "Ah bugger, we canna go anywhere in this."

Jamie stood and turned toward his godfather who had begun to walk toward him, "Nah, I was thinkin' the same thing. We would be to easy to track if we venture out with weather like this. We will need to wait for the snow to melt. The mud willna be much better, but we could stay to the rocky banks of creeks beds as far as they take us and hope the weather warms up enough to dry the mud."

Murtagh grumbled as he knelt down to fill his own flask in the ice cold stream water, "Aye, I dinna think we have any other choice in the matter. But I think we are safe enough in the cave, for now at least."

Murtagh finished filling his flask and came to take one of the horses from Jamie. They walked around silently to allow the horses to stretch their legs and root below the snow for some grass to nibble. They had been walking around near the cave entrance for about 10 minutes when Claire emerged, "Jesus H. Roosevelt Christ, it's cold out here." A moment later, after her eyes had adjusted to the bright light of morning, she looked around and realized what had happened during the night. "Oh, no, we can't go anywhere with snow on the ground. We will leave tracks that will lead anyone who is out looking for us, straight to us."

Murtagh and Jamie both chuckled at her realization, "Aye, Sassenach, looks as though we will be staying in the cave for at least a few days. But as long as we stay close and dinna venture toward the road, we should be safe enough. The stream is deep enough just up the way there to catch a few fish for our meals each day. Ye must remember that it is early spring yet and weather like this is to be expected, there is no need to fret just yet."

Claire frowned and grumbled as she stomped toward the stream, "Can nothing ever be easy in this bloody century? For fuck's sake, Jamie, we can't even escape without mother nature throwing a bloody wrench in the works."

Jamie frowned at her reference, so she rolled her eyes, "Nevermind, I just mean that we always seem to be coming up against another wall, no matter which choice we seem to make. But I guess we could be in a worse situation. You could be dead on that bloody moor, right along with Murtagh and the rest of Prince Charles' army."

Jamie looked at her solemnly, "Aye, at least we have that to be grateful for."

She looked up at hearing the sadness in his voice, and after seeing the sadness in his face, she stood up and walked over to where he stood. "Oh, Jamie, I'm sorry. I know we have much more to be grateful for and I didn't mean that I'm not grateful to be here with you, because I am. I am just so tired of fighting to live a happy boring life with you. I want for us to settle down and not have to run or worry about who is trying to kill one of us all the time. I am ready to live in peace with my husband and have a family and live happily ever after."

Jamie passed the reins to Murtagh and scooped her up in his arms, so her feet were hovering above the ground. He pressed his face into her shoulder and hugged her tight against him. "I ken, Claire, I want the same things. Ye ken if it hadna been for that damned Charles forgin' my name that I wouldna have joined his bloody army?" 

Claire sighed as she buried her own face against his broad shoulder, "Yes, Jamie, I know that and I don't blame you for the choice you made. But from now on, you need to put us first, you, me and this baby. Everyone else, be damned."

Murtagh made a disapproving sound in his throat, "Ahem."

Claire giggled, "Okay, not everyone else. Your family is included in those people that come first, but everyone else can figure it out for themselves. You are but one man Jamie Fraser and you can't be expected to worry about the well being of all of Scotland, not anymore anyway. It's time for us to be selfish and do what is best for us. All those men you have worried about, are adults and they make their own choices, only they can be responsible for the outcome of those choices, not you. You can only be responsible for your own choices."

Jamie raised his head and kissed her temple, "Aye, I agree wi' ye. But ye were the one that came up wi' the idea to stop the rising, I wouldna have even kent Prince Charles if it hadna been for ye."

He held her tighter, knowing that his last remark would not go over well, and sure enough, she began to struggle to get free immediately. "Why you god damned bloody, Scot. I was trying to save everyone."

Jamie leaned his head back so he could look her in the eye, "And is that no' what ye were just accusin' me of doin'?"

Claire huffed because she knew he was right, "Well, yes I guess you are right about that. I suppose we both need to let other people take responsibility for their actions and stop trying to save everyone. I'm sorry, Jamie, I guess that I am just as guilty as you are. Will you put me down now, my bladder is about to burst, your wee bairn has been pressing on it all night."

Jamie chuckled and gave her a quick peck on the cheek, then gently set her back on her feet. "Stay close, I dinna wish to be rescuing ye so early in the morning and before havin' my breakfast."

She threw a glare over her shoulder as she strode purposefully away.

* * *

Luckily the weather began to warm up slowly over the next few days, but it was still to wet to venture out without leaving distinctive footprints in the soft mud. They decided it was best to remain in the cave for a few more days to reduce the chances of being found. 

Claire took to sleeping for long stretches at a time. The baby was sapping every bit of energy she had and she soon became grateful that the weather had changed when it did. She wasn't sure how fast they would be able to travel with her being so tired all of the time. She didn't remember being so tired when she was pregnant with Faith. For the first couple of months of her pregnancy, she had been riding across the countryside with Murtagh in search of Jamie and had no time to notice any real changes to her body, let alone her sleep patterns. She hadn't even realized she was pregnant until she and Murtagh were discussing Jamie wanting to kill himself and she had suddenly fainted. 

Then following that, she had been so focused on rescuing Jamie she hadn't noticed that she had missed her courses until they had him safely hidden away at the abbey. Even then, she had been so focused on his recovery and pulling him from the darkness that Black Jack Randall had dragged him into that she had no thoughts for her own well being. It wasn't until they reached Paris that she had time to actually take care of herself. But her days there were monotonous, filled with sitting around Jared's house and having tea with Louise until she became to fidgety to sit still any longer and eventually volunteered with Mother Hildegard. 

Thinking back on it, perhaps she had been tired, but didn't' have the time to succumb to sleep so easily as she did now in the cave with nothing else to do to pass the time. 

After they had been in the cave for a week, with no more snow or rain, Jamie announced that they would be leaving after sundown. He explained that they would have more cover to move freely under the blanket of darkness. Neither Murtagh nor Claire argued with his logic and both were more than ready to leave their little cave behind. During the last day, Claire spent the day gathering anything that could be eaten, which wasn't' much considering it was still so early in the season. Once night fell, they all three left the cave with the horses already saddled and ready to go and rode off into the night. 


	3. Chapter 3

They rode for several hours, they kept the pace slow to save the horses from possible injury or exhaustion too early on in their journey. Jamie led the way with Claire following a few yards behind him. If there was danger ahead she would have time to react. Murtagh followed a few yards behind Claire, purposely confusing their tracks in case someone was attempting to follow them.

As daylight approached they rode deeper into the forest, even avoiding paths that only the wildlife had used. They wanted to travel as far as they possibly could before they were forced to stop. Only taking short 5 to 10 minute breaks to allow Claire or one of the men to relieve themselves.

Jamie had a destination in mind that he wanted to reach before they stopped to make camp and allow the horses to rest for a few days. Nobody complained since they were all of the same minds to reach the coast before their absence was noticed amongst the captured or killed Jacobites at Culloden Moor. 

Jamie knew of a narrow bend in the Helmsdale River where it was shallow enough and would be easy for the horses to cross as well as provide a secluded area to camp for a short time. There were also several deep pools nearby where they could catch plenty of fish to supply them for several more days worth of travel. They would only stay there long enough to rest for one day, during the daylight hours. They would break camp just before the sunset and head deep into the forest and continue on until they reached the coast. 

Luckily they reached the river's edge just as the sun was beginning to peek over the horizon and spill warm light everywhere. As with every other time they had stopped, Jamie quickly dismounted then helped Claire down so that she could run off into the cover of the forest and relieve herself. Murtagh and Jamie took care to hobble the horses and set up a small makeshift camp that could be disassembled quickly in the event that they were discovered. 

When Claire strolled back into camp, feeling much better now that her bladder was empty, Jamie and Murtagh had already caught a few fish and had them roasting over a small fire in the center of their camp. Claire's belly growled as the sweet scents of cooking fish reached her nose. Jamie looked up at the sound and grinned at her, "Dinna fash, Sassenach, now that we dinna have a whole army to provide for, I can focus on keepin' my wife fed and healthy. We will put some meat back on those bones of yers yet, come and sit beside me, the fish are nearly ready."

Claire returned his grin, strode over, and obliged his request by sitting as close as she could get and resting her head on his shoulder. Moments, where they could just relax and enjoy each other's company, had been hard to come by during the onslaught of the rising. It was a wonder they had even found enough time to create a life that was thriving below Claire's heart.

Jamie relished the moment of peace and respite just as much as Claire did and tilted his head to rest his cheek atop her crown of curls. A happy sigh escaped his lips as he felt her relax against him.

He was grateful that the stones had rejected her. He had never wanted to send her away in the first place and it seemed as though whatever God who was responsible for sending her to him, didn't wish to see them parted either.

However, at the moment when he had tried to send her back and it hadn't worked, Jamie had panicked with a fear that gripped his heart. Until Claire had suggested running away together, he wasn't sure what he would do to keep her and the child safe.

But his brilliant wife had already thought of a plan to run away which sparked a memory of when he had been hiding after his arrest with the Black Watch. He remembered several hiding places he had used, which were situated directly along the route they would take to get to the coast. If they could just make it to the coast unmolested, Jamie knew they could pull it off without a hitch. 

The smell of the fish beginning to char brought Jamie abruptly from his thoughts. Claire sat up to allow Jamie to tend the fish as she watched him in his element, no worries on his mind other than filling their bellies. The willow trees surrounding their campsite would cast long shadows until late afternoon, to allow their road weary bodies to sleep through the day, Murtagh had taken advantage of that fact as soon as the bedrolls were laid out. He was now snoring softly, laying flat on his back with his hands clasped over his chest on the other side of the small campfire. 

Jamie pulled the three fish from the fire, setting one aside for Murtagh to eat later and handing a second to Claire. He eased back to sit beside her, leaning against a large tree that had fallen at the edge of the clearing. They ate in silence, both focused on satisfying their hungry bellies. When their meal was finished, Jamie handed Claire his flask that he had filled with cold water from the river upon their arrival. She took a large sip and then another before passing it back to Jamie. She looked up at his face as she passed the flask to him and noticed that his brow was furrowed, he was deep in thought.

She placed a hand on his bicep, "What is it, my love. What has you so worried?"

Jamie shook his head and focused his gaze on her face, "Och, nothin'."

She rubbed his bicep and furrowed her own brow in a frown, "It's something, you don't get that look on your face for no reason at all."

He smiled softly at her and placed his hand over hers to still its' movement, "I was just thinkin' about the men from Lallybroch. I hope they were able to make it home and not get caught up in that bloody pointless battle. I also feel bad for the men who sacrificed their lives for that fool Prince Charles."

Claire leaned against him as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders, "That is my hope as well, Jamie. But there is nothing more we can do now, we promised each other that we would let others be responsible for themselves. We have to think about ourselves now, about our family. Scotland is lost, we have tried everything within our power to try and change that, but alas two people fighting fate were simply not enough. I believe we did all we could and saved those within our power to do so."

Unbeknownst to both of them, Murtagh had awoken during their discussion. He sat up, surprising them both with his sudden movements and interjected his thoughts on the topic, "Aye, I sent the men from Lallybroch home, before I decided to follow the two of ye. They were well on their way not long after the two of ye rode out of there as if the devil himself was chasin' ye. So, aye, at least we were able to save those from our little corner of Scotland. Now, that we have that settled, did the two of ye save me some fish, or did ye eat it all?"

Jamie chuckled and tossed the last fish over to Murtagh, who reached out and caught it, just before it hit the dirt in front of his feet. He glared at Jamie as he sat back and began peeling the skin back from the meat of the fish. Murtagh looked up from the fish to see the two of them watching him, "Ye both best get some sleep, we dinna have much time before we need to get moving again."

Jamie and Claire looked at each other and silently agreed. They moved over to their bedroll and laid down next to each other, with Jamie spooning Claire and wrapping his arm over her waist, resting his hand protectively over her stomach. Claire's hand came to rest over Jamie's and they fell asleep within moments of closing their eyes.

* * *

They awoke just as the sun was setting below the horizon, casting a lovely palette of pastel hues across the land and sky. Tiny streams of sunlight filtered through the leaves of the trees, reflecting off the water in the river as it flowed over the rocks and sparkling like diamonds. It was reminiscent of Claude Lorrain’s Port de Mer au Soleil Couchant that had been on display at the Palace of Versailles during their initial visit. The sounds of the forest were changing from the happy excited chirping and scurrying sounds of birds and animals awake and hunting during the day to the more subdued soft chirping sounds of the night creatures coming awake.

With the light nearly gone, the three hastily packed everything up and removed all traces of their camp. They were meticulous in making sure not even a single bread crumb was left behind for anyone to use to track them and discover their whereabouts. 

They had the horses watered and ready to leave just as the last bit of light disappeared over the horizon, leaving no light save for what the moon and stars provided until morning.

Jamie carefully helped Claire to mount up on the horse they had acquired at the beginning of their journey, whom she had affectionately named Hope. Claire had reasoned that for their journey to succeed they would need more than just a little hope. She said calling the horse Hope would remind them not to lose hope whenever their journey became too daunting or arduous. Once Claire was secure in her saddle, Jamie mounted his horse and led the small group further Northeast toward the coast off of Huna. As long as they didn't run into any obstacles they should reach the little farm just outside of Halkirk soon after first light. 

Jamie had met the people who owned the farm when he was hiding from the British before being recaptured and taken to Wentworth. He had helped them birth a foal that was having a difficult time entering the world and had stayed on with them for a couple of weeks to make sure the colt would survive after the difficult birth. The family had told Jamie that they owed him a debt of gratitude and it was his hope that they would allow him, his wife, and godfather to cash in on that now by allowing them to sleep in their barn for a few days before continuing on toward Huna. 

The second leg of the trip since leaving the cave was turning out to be quite dull, which they all welcomed gladly. None of them wished for the alternative, a dull journey was a safe journey. At times there was enough room on the path for Claire and Jamie to ride next to each other and they used the time to talk over several topics.

Claire was staring up at the stars in a moment of silence as Jamie glanced over at her and noted the look of complete wonder on her face, "What are ye thinking of, Sassenach, ye seem happy at the moment?"

Claire sighed and brought her eyes down from the sky to land on her husband's proud form, riding next to her. "I was just thinking that we will get to teach our child about the stars together. Well, we will get to teach our child about everything together. I won't have to depend on stories to paint a picture of who this little one's father is. This baby will get to know the real you, the selfless, brave, tenderhearted, loving man that you truly are, without having to depend on my meager words to attempt to describe the wonderful man that you are. It makes me happy that I wasn't able to go back. I know you wanted a safe place for us, but the safest place for both of us is with you and nothing could be better than being wrapped in the safety of your loving embrace."

Jamie choked on a sob, "I was just thinking that same thing this morning when we stopped to make camp at the river. Well no' exactly the same thing, I was thanking God for no' letting ye pass through the stones, for allowing me to keep ye by my side and to see my child grow. My dream, our dream has no' been ripped away from us because of Charles Stuart's doomed war after all. No' only will we get to raise this child together but all those that the Lord sees fit to give us after this one comes. I canna wait to teach this child and any others the ways of the world. How to hunt, track, fish, how to care for and ride a horse, to be a man or woman of worth. We both have many things that we can teach our children and as ye say, we now have the chance to do it together."

Jamie looked up at the stars, feeling at once at peace with their decision to run away. "What was it that ye told me about the stars?"

Claire looked over at him a smile trying to curl at her lips, "Which thing, I have said several things on several different occasions?"

Jamie shook his head and tore his gaze from the constellations above to settle on Claire's face, which at the moment was lit like an angel from the celestial bodies floating millions of miles over their heads. "what was it ye said about the light."

Claire hummed, "Hmm, well I said that scientists say that the light from the stars takes hundreds, thousands even millions of years to reach us and the light from the stars we see now could be only a memory. The stars we see in the sky could have burned out millions of years ago, but because the light takes so long to reach us, we would never even know it."

Jamie nodded, "Aye, that's the one. Do ye suppose that our children, and grandchildren and even great grandchildren will see the same stars and constellations as we do?"

Claire looked at him thoughtfully and murmured, "Yes, Jamie, I do. I remember seeing these same stars and constellations when I was stationed in France in the army. Whenever I would have a particularly grueling day I would go out at night, still wearing my apron, covered in blood and other bodily fluids from countless soldiers, and stare up at these same stars. I would wish for the day that the war would end, the day where I no longer felt the oppression of the 20th century. I would long for days as I had as a child with my uncle as we traversed the globe in search of rare artifacts. It's ironic now that I think about the wishes I had in my heart on those days."

Jamie glanced at her, "How so?"

She shook her head as if to dispel the memories, "Well, in all those wishes and daydreams, I never once thought of a life with Frank. I dreamed of a life more like the one we have now, where things were simpler and I could enjoy nature and the freedom it offered again. I've told you what life would have been like if I had never touched the stones, a life of a housewife to a college professor. Likely feeling the oppression of living in a city, surrounded by stone and metal. That was never who I was meant to be, not with the way I was raised at least. My uncle raised me to be my own person, to think for myself and do things for myself, to not depend on anyone to make me happy or whole. And up until I met you, that is exactly how I lived my life. I didn't need Frank to feel like myself. When I was parted from him, I didn't feel as though a part of myself was missing, but with you, that all changed." 

Jamie smiled in satisfaction at the thought that he felt that she completed him as well. 

"I didn't realize it at first, but the more time we spent together, the more I needed to be near you. Then after we wed, well I felt complete, as though a hole I didn't realize I had in myself had suddenly been filled. When you left with the watch and the redcoats took you and forced you to escape, I felt that hole open up again and the ache of not being a whole person was almost too overwhelming for me to function properly. When you took me back to the stones the first time, I felt a bit of that pain at the thought of being separated from you. Then when you took me again just 8 days ago, that hole began to open up again. The pain was more than I could bear, I didn't think I could survive if the stones had taken me, knowing that you were going to return to the battlefield and die. I can't live in this world without you James Fraser, not in this time or another. Please don't ask me to do that ever again."

Jamie rode closer and reached out to wipe the tears from her face, "Oh, mo ghráidh, I willna ever ask that of ye, no' as long as we live. If I have learned anything these past days, weeks, months, and years by yer side, tis that we were destined to be together, no matter what might come our way. We will fight the evil and cherish the good, from now till the end of our time on this earth."

Claire smiled softly and turned her face to kiss his palm, "I will hold you to that James Fraser because I'm not going anywhere. I am your wife and you are stuck with me for the rest of your life, whether you like it or not."

Jamie chuckled, "Well I happen to like it verra much, mo chridhe. Do ye need to stop for a wee break, it has been more than a few hours since we left the river and I'm sure that our wee bairn is pressing on yer bladder?"

Claire chuckled as her hand came to rest over the said child, "Yes, actually that is a grand idea."

Jamie gestured to Murtagh to catch up with him, he had been giving them space to allow them some privacy while they spoke. "What is it a caraidh?"

Jamie pulled back on his reins, "We are going to stop for a moment, Claire needs a short break and it will do us all good to stretch our legs for a bit. We have about 6 more hours before we reach the cottage of the Graham family."

After a quick break, they remounted and continued on their journey, with a destination in mind, the tromp through the forest didn't seem so daunting to Claire. Again Murtagh hung back to allow them privacy and to mar their tracks. Claire took the opportunity to discuss something that had been weighing on her mind since they were about to part at the stones. "Jamie."

He looked over at her, "Hmm, aye, what is it, Sassenach?"

She smiled softly, "Well, at the stones I said that I would name our child Brian after your father."

Jamie nodded, "Och, aye?"

She shook her head, "Well, what if it's a girl? We thought Faith was going to be a boy and it turned out we were wrong and we didn't have any names picked out for her if she turned out to be a girl. Well, actually we hadn't settled on a boy's name either."

Jamie grinned sheepishly, "Actually Sassenach, I did have a couple of names in mind. I thought of them on the ship from Scotland to France, there was no' much else I could do wi' my wame constantly turnin' over as much as it did."

Claire looked at him in surprise, "You did? You never said anything."

Jamie shook the memory from his mind, "I was trapped in my own head back then, dealin' wi' the demons that wouldna let me be. I didna feel that I had a right to have any say in the matter."

Claire peered over at him skeptically, "So then what has changed now?"

Jamie sighed, "I realized that even though a bad thing was done to me, it doesna change the man that I am or how worthy of yer love that I am. I am this child's father and have just as much right as ye do to be a part of that, which includes deciding on a name together."

Claire smiled and relaxed into her saddle again, "Too right, you do. Now tell me what these names are that you have had in mind for the past two years."

Jamie grinned, "Well for a lad, I didna think of naming the bairn after my father, that was what ye came up wi' at the stones. I thought of naming him after my brother, Willie. For a lass, I thought perhaps of naming her after yer mother, Julia."

Claire let a tear roll down her cheek, "Oh, Jamie that is so thoughtful of you, I love them both, but I know that you must have thought beyond that. A man with as many names as you have would have certainly thought of at least middle names if not their entire name all the way through."

Jamie's eyes sparkled in the moonlight, "Aye, I did. For the lad, his name would be William Henry David Beauchamp Fraser, after Willie, yer father, and my father, David was one of Da's middle names, ken."

Claire's eyes sparkled with more tears, "Oh, Jamie that is lovely, yes if it is a boy that is what we will name him. Now, what did you have in mind for a girl?"

Jamie sat up taller in his saddle, proud that she liked the name he had chosen and hoped she would be just as happy with the lass's name. "For a lass, I thought perhaps that Julia Ellen Elizabeth Beauchamp Fraser would do nicely."

Claire furrowed her brow in thought, Jamie noticed and slumped in his saddle, "Do ye no' like the name I have chosen for a lass, then?"

Claire jumped at his words, "Oh, no, that's not it. I love the name, but if I am to be honored in the girl's name, why shouldn't you be honored in the boy's name?"

Jamie chuckled as he listened to where her thoughts had taken her, "We can honor my name and Jenny's with other bairns, now that we are together, we have all the time in the world to have as many children as ye wish mo chridhe."

Claire giggled, "Whatever you say my Laird, but we are not having twelve children, I don't care how many spoons we have."

Jamie chuckled, "Aye, whatever ye wish my Lady. We can stop when ye feel that we are finished or when our family feels complete."

Claire nodded in finality, "Good, I'm glad we have that settled. Now tell me about this family we are going to stay with, how did you meet them?"


	4. Chapter 4

Over the next six hours, Jamie regaled Claire with what had filled his time after he had escaped the redcoats when Horrocks had set them up. She was shocked to find out that he had traveled the exact path they were on and traveled to the north coast. Apparently he had worked all along the coast during their separation and only moved on when redcoats were spotted nearby.

He eventually began to make his way back south after a few weeks, hoping the hunt for him had died down enough to send word to Lallybroch about his whereabouts. That is when he started hearing stories of the singing Sassenach and her sword dancing companion. 

As he moved further south he learned more details about the singing Sassenach and found out that she was singing a song that was very special to him. He realized then that the singing Sassenach and her partner must be Claire and Murtagh. He had abandoned his plan to send word to Lallybroch, knowing that his wife and godfather were out searching for him.

He knew that if he could meet up with them, they would be able to escape together, possibly even sale to France and out of the clutches of the British army. He was caught when he approached a town, too eager to see Claire to even worry about being discreet or disguising himself. Unfortunately one of the redcoat officers recognized him and six of them tackled him to the ground, bound his wrists and ankles, then hauled him off to Wentworth prison to face trial for murder.

Claire had remained mostly quiet during his retelling, but with the mention of Wentworth, tears began to spill down her face. "I'm so sorry Jamie, I should have known you had a plan to return. I was just so worried about you after that man from the watch returned with Ian and said that the redcoats had captured you."

Jamie placed a hand on her thigh, "Dinna fash mo nighean donn, tis all over now and we are off to start our new life away from everything that has tried to tear us apart."

Claire nodded and wiped the tears from her face, "Yes, you are absolutely right. All of that is in the past and it is time for me to let it go as you have."

Jamie smiled softly at her, "Aye, I have finally let it go, though it was a hard thing to overcome. I just hope ye are right about Jack Randall dying on that battlefield. I dinna ken that I will be able to restrain myself if I meet him again."

Claire smiled, "If that happens, I will help you kill him. I'm sick of putting other people first, it is time to put us first."

They rode in relative silence for a few more hours, making multiple stops for Claire to relieve the pressure on her bladder, but not stopping for more than a few minutes. As they approached a ridge, Jamie asked that they all stop once they reached the top. "These people dinna see many visitors. I think it best if ye allow me to approach the house first while the two of ye wait in the trees. I will go in and find out if they are willin' to help us and if they are, I shall signal ye to come down to the house."

Claire and Murtagh nodded in understanding and allowed Jamie to take the lead again, with Claire following close behind him. When they reached the tree line, Jamie stopped again, "Alright that is their cottage just there in the clearing, wait here. Murtagh, I will use the bird call if it is safe to come down."

Claire grabbed the sleeve of Jamie's shirt, "Tell them I am a healer, it might help to convince them to let us stay with them for a few days."

Jamie nodded, "Aye, tis a good idea. I will be sure to let them ken it. I willna be gone long, if we canna stay here, we will continue on until we reach the coast and hope there is a ship at dock already planning to cross the channel."

They all nodded in agreement, then Murtagh and Claire stayed back and watched as Jamie rode away toward the cottage, barely visible in the twilight. 

Jamie rode the few minutes that took to reach the cottage, slowing his horse down before he got to close so his approach wouldn't startle the family inside. He jumped down off of his horse, led it to the hitching rail next to the barn, then walked across the small dooryard toward the house. The sun had just begun to rise, but he could smell breakfast cooking and hear the family milling about inside.

He knocked on the door then took a step back so he wouldn't appear too imposing when the door was opened to him. It was the wife who opened the door, her eyes going wide as she took in her visitor, "Mr. Fraser, what brings ye so far north again?"

Jamie cleared his throat, "I'm sorry to bother ye again, Mistress Simmons, but my wife, my godfather, and I are on the run from the British army. We are makin' our way to the north coast in hopes of boarding a ship to the northern isles. But we have been riding our horses hard since April 16th and they will need a bit of a rest if we are to make it the rest of the way on our journey. Would ye be amenable to allowin' us to stay in yer barn for a few days? My wife is a healer and can help wi' any illnesses yer family might be sufferin'. My godfather and I can help wi' the animals or repair anything that needs fixin' in trade for allowin' us to stay."

The lady of the house smiled, "Mr. Fraser, we ken that ye are Red Jamie and we would be happy to help ye and yer family. There is no need to make any trades, though we welcome whatever help ye can offer us for as long as ye need to stay."

Jamie bowed, "Thank ye, Mistress Simmons, I'll just let them ken that ye are agreeable and we will get settled in yer barn and wait for yer husband to let us ken what we can help wi'."

Mistress Simmons returned his bow and closed the door. Jamie walked toward the edge of the yard and whistled the bird call to Murtagh. He stood there and watched as Claire and Murtagh rode out of the tree line at a gallop and waited for them to come to a stop in front of him before turning to lead them toward the barn.

Murtagh climbed down off his horse and Jamie helped Claire to get down. They tied their horses next to Jamie's and then turned to follow him into the barn when Mistress Simmons poked her head out the front door of the house, "Come in and join us for breakfast, won't ye. I ken ye have had a rough few months with the rising, ye must be famished from yer long journey."

Claire smiled and they all three headed toward the house. She knew that these people would likely be offended by her Englishness, so she chose to remain quiet and let the men do all of the talking. They hadn't intended to interact this closely with the family right off, so Claire was a bit nervous about what they might think of her.

They walked into the house and Jamie took it upon himself to make introductions. "Murtagh, Claire might I introduce ye to Mrs. Simmons, Mr. Simmons and their children, Amanda and Jeremiah. Mr. and Mrs. Simmons this is my wife Claire and my godfather, Murtagh."

Mrs. Simmons walked up to Claire and took both of her hands in her own, "Tis an honor to finally meet ye, lass. Mr. Fraser talked of ye often when he stayed wi' us. And dinna worry about bein' English, we willna hold it against ye."

Claire's eyes grew wide as she tore her gaze from Mrs. Simmons and directed it at Jamie. He smirked and gave her a slight nod that told her he did indeed tell these nice people all about her and the love they shared. Claire looked back down at Mrs. Simmons, "Thank you so much, I cannot tell you how much we appreciate your hospitality. It has been a long dusty ride and a good homecooked breakfast sounds delightful. But please let me help you with the cleanup and any other chores that need doing once we have finished."

Mrs. Simmons squeezed Claire's hands, "Aye, I will be sure to take all the help ye are able to offer, but I can see from the glow of ye, that ye are in the family way. So ye must be sure to take plenty of breaks and get enough rest."

Claire blushed, "I didn't think it was that evident yet, but I will be sure to follow your suggestions."

Mrs. Simmons let go of Claire and turned to take her place at the table, "Please have a seat, make yer selves at home and take as much as ye like. We have plenty for everyone."

The three of them were beyond grateful for the hospitality that the Simmons family had shown them and all of them pitched in with the daily chores without even having to be asked. On the second day, Jamie asked Mr. Simmons if he had some paper and a quill to spare so that he could write to Jenny. The postman would be arriving the following morning and Jamie wanted to have his letter ready to send. 

After explaining to Mr. Simmons why he wanted to write to his sister, Mr. Simmons was more than happy to not only offer Jamie the writing implements that he had asked for but the use of his small desk that sat in the corner of the families main living area. 

Jamie waited until after dinner when all of the chores were done and the children had been put to bed to begin writing his letter. Claire and Murtagh sat in chairs close by so they could offer up thoughts to include in the letter as well. With the threat of redcoats perhaps getting their hands on the letter, they all agreed that their names would not be used in the letter that could lead to anyone being captured or punished. Jenny would know from the handwriting alone, who the letter had come from.

_My dearest Jenny,_

_I write to you from a place of great sorrow. You may ask why I am feeling such and I assure you that it is not due to any loss that I have suffered, but from a pain in my heart about not being honest with you from the start. My wife and I have been keeping a secret from you, a secret we now realize that we should have shared on the day we returned home._

_It was my wife's secret to share since she is the one it happened to. She had already been tried for being suspected of being a witch and was fearful for anyone other than me to know of her true origins. For obvious reasons, I cannot disclose the full nature of her origins in this letter but know that when I see you again, we shall tell you everything._

_My main concern is that you trust that what I can tell you is the truth and you take proper heed of what I have to ask of you. My wife knew that the rising would happen long before it did. She knew what the outcome would be, that the Jacobites would lose at a final battle that would happen at Culloden Moor. She and I traveled to Paris to attempt to thwart Prince Charles's plans, we even hired a boy to steal his letters so we could attempt to cut off his funding for the rebellion. But as you know, we did not succeed in our attempts._

_My wife and I intended to stay out of the rebellion since neither of us has any love for Prince Charles, but when he forged my name on that document and made me a traitor to the crown, I had no choice but to try and help him win. The state of the army on the morning before the battle was poor, they had no chance of winning and history records this. I convinced a clansman to lead our men home in hopes of saving their lives._

_Claire and I were discussing one last option to stop the massacre that would occur on that battlefield when our uncle overheard our plans. He tried to attack my wife, accusing her of being a witch and me of being a traitor to the Jacobites. He tried to kill my wife, so I took his life._

_I am now a traitor to the crown, the Jacobites, and our mother's family. My wife and I as well as my godfather had to escape all of that. We never had loyalty to our mother's family or the Jacobites, but no one would give us a chance to prove that to those loyal to the crown, so we find ourselves moving across land and sea to the origins of our people._

_Do you remember the stories that our mother used to tell us of a place where the selkies used to live? That is where the three of us are going._

_I implore you, to abandon the home that our father built, for the safety of your family and come with us. I know that I ask much, but my wife knows what happens after the battle at Culloden as well. Tartans will be banned, the Gáidhlig language will be banned, weapons of any kind will be banned. They will all be taken and burned. The highland way of life will be no more, and anyone suspected of being a supporter of Prince Charles will be punished. I will remind you that being a Scot is enough to be suspected._

_The women will be raped, the children tortured and the men will be forced to watch before they are hung or shot. Please, for the safety of your family, heed my words, and join us._

_We are leaving the company of some friends that have put us up in two days' time. You will not have received this letter by the time we board a ship, but if you leave as soon as you receive this we will perhaps meet up when we reach the first bit of land on our journey. We will stay on the first bit of land for two weeks' time and if I have not received word from you by then or been blessed by the sight of your beautiful face, we will continue on toward the land of the selkies._

Jamie offered the finished letter to Claire and Murtagh to read over and make sure he hadn't left anything important out. Once finished reading it and agreeing that everything that could be said was already included, Murtagh took Jamie's place at the desk and signed his name at the bottom. He only used his first name in case someone knew of him being associated with Jamie.

He folded the letter and handed back to Jamie, who dropped some hot wax on the edge to seal it and pressed his ring into the wax. His seal would be his signature, that hopefully, only his sister would understand the meaning of.


	5. Chapter 5

The Simmons’ family was so grateful for the extra help and the medical advice that Claire had offered them, that they made sure that the group had enough provisions to last well past the time it would take them to arrive at the coast. The three of them woke well before the sun had come up and walked out of the barn to a clear, crisp spring morning with a sky full of brilliantly shining stars.

They readied their horses, cleaned up the area in the barn where they had been staying for the past few days and set off toward the coast. The plan was to ride straight through the woods, avoiding any trails or paths, and arrive in Huna in 16 or 17 hours. They would make a few stops along the way to rest the horses and eat whatever they could gather or have the luck to catch, saving most of their provisions for the voyage across the sea.

They were all quite eager to reach the coast, having heard from the postman when he came to the Simmons’ farm that there would be a boat leaving the dock the morning after the three of them were set to arrive. Jamie hoped that the few coins he had in his sporran would be enough to buy passage for the three of them on the boat. Claire had a plan of her own of how they would buy passage on the boat, it would just mean a little scouting for the proper ship's captain when they arrived in Huna.

The three of them rode along in comfortable silence for several hours before Claire suddenly felt quite ill and pulled her horse to a halt. Murtagh, who had been riding at the back of the group, hollered for Jamie to stop, “Jamie, Claire is ill. We must stop to see to the lass's well being.”

Jamie spun his horse around and rode back to where Claire was bent at the waist, heaving the contents of her stomach onto the forest floor. He reached down to hold the hair back that had slipped from her pins and rubbed her back with his other hand. When she finally collapsed to her knees and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, Jamie knelt beside her, “Are ye alright, is it the bairn?”

Claire nodded as she leaned her head against his chest, “Yes, I think it’s only the morning sickness that I experienced when I was pregnant with Faith. It will pass, I just need a moment before we continue on.”

Jamie nodded and patiently waited for the color to come back to her cheeks before coaxing her back to her feet. “Perhaps ye should ride wi’ me until ye feel like yer self again.”

Claire shook her head as she accepted his hand and pulled herself up with his help, “No, that would only slow us down. It’s not serious and might mean a few more stops along the way, but I want to get to Huna as soon as possible. The sooner we arrive and I can be done riding that bloody horse, the better I will feel.”

Claire leaned her head against his chest to steady herself before forcing herself to climb back on the horse.

Jamie chuckled, “Do ye no' remember the last time ye were wi’ child on a ship? Christ lass, ye were as sick as I was. Tis just lucky for the both of us I suppose that this voyage willna take quite as long as the crossing to France.”

Claire lifted her head to glare at him. “That might be so, for the first leg of the journey, but we have to get on several ships and the next crossing will last a few days at least. However, I am grateful that the first part will only last a few hours, and we will be able to see land the whole time. That should at least help to keep your seasickness at bay.”

Jamie kissed her on the tip of the nose, "Aye, that means that it will be my turn to care for ye mo chridhe. Alas, our roles will be reversed and ye will have to lay still while I tend to ye and force ye to drink foul tasting concoctions." 

Claire giggled, "I don't think so, I am still the healer and I know what is best. You, my dear sweet loving husband will not be forcing me to swallow anything that I don't already approve of."

Jamie huffed, "Well, we shall see about that when ye are the one heavin' yer guts into the sea."

Claire patted him on the chest, "Thank you for taking my mind off of my stomach for a while, but I think it's about time that we mount up and get back on the road to Huna."

Jamie grinned, "Aye, tis time indeed. There is a stream up ahead, we shall stop and fill our flasks wi' fresh water, I think it will help to keep yer wame calm until we ride into Huna."

Claire pulled herself up into her saddle and nodded, "Yes, I believe you might be right about that, no time to waste, let's go."

Jamie pulled himself up into his saddle, turned his horse back in the direction of Huna, and gave him a swift kick in the flanks. The three of them took off at a slow gallop to make up for the bit of time they had lost while Claire was sick. About an hour after remounting they came upon the shallow stream that Jamie had told them about. They filled their flasks and all bent down to scoop some of the icy water into their mouths. Once they were finally satiated they remounted and continued on their journey. 

As they got closer to the coast the air became damper and the smell of the sea permeated the atmosphere. Even though they were riding through the forest and under cover from the canopy of the limbs above, they were still sweating profusely and had to stop at every bit of water they came across to refill their flasks. Since they were riding over flatlands and had left most of the hills and munros behind them, they were able to pick up their pace. The seaport town of Huna came into view just 12 hours into their journey and Jamie informed them that they should arrive in the town in roughly another hour.

However, the three of them were eager to be off the mainland and pushed their horses harder and galloped into town 40 minutes after Jamie's announcement. They dismounted at the outskirts of town and led their horses behind the shops in order to avoid any possible threats. Murtagh led the way since he was the least recognizable of the three of them and soon found a stable where they could keep their horses for the night.

Jamie insisted that the safest option for all of them was to remain together and complete their tasks as one. Claire decided that it was time to inform Jamie of her plan. "Jamie, I know we don't have much money to buy passage on a ship, but I know that many ships that are small enough to cross this channel are lacking in a proper ship's surgeon. I think that if we could offer my skills in exchange for our passage, we might be able to save the bit of coin that we do have."

Jamie rubbed his chin, "Aye, that might just work. Let's be off and see about finding a ship."

The three cautiously walked out of the shadows but spotted not even one redcoat so they let their guard down just a bit as they made their way to the dock where three small ships were docked. Jamie gave Claire a look that was a silent warning to keep quiet, her English accent would not be welcome and she knew better than to challenge him in such a public place and cause their only chance of escape to slip through their fingers. Jamie walked arm in arm with Claire as he approached a man near a ship, "Pardon me, but are ye perhaps the captain of this fine vessel?"

The man nodded, "Aye, I am, what is it to ye?"

Jamie bowed, "Allow me to introduce myself, the name is James Fraser, this is my wife Claire and my godfather Murtagh FitzGibbons. We are in need of passage to the island of Stroma, do ye perhaps have room on yer ship for three travelers?"

The man stood straighter, "James Fraser, ye say, as in the infamous Red Jamie and his Sassenach wife, the Stuart witch?"

Jamie grimaced as his hand tightened over Claire's which was held tightly in the crook of his arm, "Aye, that would be correct."

The man smiled in delight, "There is no need to pay for yer passage sir, it would be my pleasure to assist ye and yer family to reach Stroma, however, would ye no' want to go a bit further? Stroma is less than 2 miles from the mainland and the British could still reach ye there."

Jamie groaned, "Well as it were, we are indeed headed a bit further north, but I wrote a letter to my sister. I promised to wait on Stroma for 2 weeks' time until I either receive word that she isna comin' or I see her and her family wi' my own eyes."

The captain nodded, "Tis a fine plan to try and save yer kin. Allow me to make ye an offer if ye will?"

Jamie frowned, "What offer do ye have for me, then?"

The captain bowed, "Let me be of service to ye in more than just passage to Stroma. As ye can see by the boats lined up here at the dock, that my ship is the largest. That means that my ship is seaworthy enough to travel all the way to the furthest northern isles. I could offer my services to take ye and yer family as far north as ye wish." Jamie opened his mouth to protest but the captain held up his hand, "Now hear me out before ye decline the offer. I ken what ye have done to try and fight for Scotland and her people, it was a valiant effort on yer part and that of yer wife, but the British forces were too strong. We received word a few days back of the slaughter at Culloden and I am grateful that a man such as yer self has survived to fight another day. I can take ye to Stoma to await word from yer sister and return in 2 weeks time to take ye the rest of the way to where ever it is that ye wish to go. All I ask is that yer wife, if this lovely lass is indeed the Sassenach that we have all heard about, that she see to my men. The stories say that she is the best healer in Scotland, if that is so, then I offer ye this deal."

Jamie clamped his mouth shut, to stunned to utter a single word. Luckily Claire was not as shocked at the man's request and stepped forward offering her free hand, "It is so nice to meet you, captain, I am the healer that you have heard about and I would be happy to take a look at your men. The sooner the better if I do say so and then if it is all the same to you, we would like to get underway today."

The captain nodded, "Tis my pleasure to meet ye, Mrs. Fraser and ye may call me Captain Ardis. The men are at the pub presently, but I will have the cabin boy fetch them back. We can be underway as soon as ye have seen to all of my men."

Claire curtsied to the captain, "As you say, captain. We just need to fetch our belongings and we will meet you back here at the dock within the hour."

The captain walked onto the gangplank to fetch the cabin boy as Jamie, Claire and Murtagh returned to the stables. Jamie spoke briefly with the man who owned the stables and easily struck a bargain for the man to purchase the three horses. After they had removed their few belongings from the horses, the three went in search of a shop to purchase some clothing with the money they had gotten for the sale of the horses.

The men each bought 2 new shirts and 2 sets of breaks. Claire insisted they needed at least 5 pairs of stockings each since her mending skills were not that great and the men would likely be doing their own mending once they reached the town of Unst on Shetland Island. Claire purchased three shifts, skipped the corsets, and purchased two overskirts and two bodices with interchangeable stomachers. She reasoned that once they reached Unst, she would be spending much less time worrying about what she wore than the men. They would be out in the fields or with horses while she was at home growing their child and seeing to patients. Her clothing would last much longer than theirs would and she wouldn't need as much variety as they would. It was also the hope of all three of them, that Jenny would heed their warning and pack all of their belongings from Lallybroch and bring them with her to Stroma.


	6. Chapter 6

The three of them had been staying at a small inn on the island of Stroma for the past 12 days. Only going out when necessary to avoid being recognized. They were sitting in the dining area of the inn when a young boy arrived with a message, "Mr. Fraser, I have a message from Captain Ardis."

Jamie set his fork down and turned all of his attention to the young boy as did Claire and Murtagh, "What message do ye bring me, lad, we were no' expectin' to hear from the captain for another two days?"

The boy pulled a letter from his pocket and handed it to Jamie. Claire leaned closer to Jamie as he opened the letter so she could read the contents of it over his shoulder. There was no marking on the outside of the letter to reveal who the writer had been, which caused Jamie and Claire both to furrow their brows in confusion. Jamie carefully unfolded the letter, and upon seeing the handwriting the wrinkle in his brow immediately softened. He looked up at Murtagh and his voice came out in a whisper, "Tis from Jenny."

Murtagh's brow rose to his hairline, "Well, dinna keep us in suspense, what does it say?"

Jamie looked back down at the letter and tried to steady his shaking hands as he opened his mouth to read it.

_Dear Brother,_

_I ken from yer letter that ye are worried about us, but if what ye say is true, why did ye wait until now to reveal the truth to me? I will take yer warning to heart, and we will prepare, but I canna just leave my home on yer word alone. I ken where ye plan to go and if the time should come that we do need to leave this place, we will ken where to come. I received yer last gift for wee Jamie and we have it safely tucked away. The messenger that brought the gift to us, was determined to return to ye, but I couldna let him leave alone. I have provided him with sufficient provisions to last him until he reaches ye. He will be traveling wi' a tenant and should arrive within a week of ye receive this letter. I told him that he was welcome to stay here and he would be treated like family, but he insisted that he belonged wi' ye and yer wife. I wish ye luck and I am glad that ye survived to live a full and happy life. For yer own safety as well as ours, I willna write ye again and I shall ask the same of ye. If the time comes that we shall leave this place, I will send word ahead so that ye might have time to prepare for us. I am sendin' yer belongings wi' the messenger I spoke of. I love ye brother and I am no' angry that ye kept this from me, but I wish ye would have trusted me._

_Your loving sister,_

_Janet_

Jamie looked up from the letter and wiped the tears from his face, "Well, I suppose we should head down to the docks to speak wi' Captain Ardis, Fergus will need his help to get to Stroma."

Claire and Murtagh nodded, "Aye, perhaps I should ask the Captain to take me back to the mainland to wait for the lad to arrive. He willna ken who to trust and we dinna need him tryin' to stow away on a ship just to be taken somewhere else."

Claire reached across the table and placed her hand over Murtagh's, "Thank you, Murtagh, I think that is a great idea and we are grateful to you for offering to do this for our son."

Murtagh nodded, "Aye, lass, ye ken I would do anythin' for yer family. I love the lad as if he were my own grandson, I shall no' let ye down."

Claire looked up at Jamie who had not uttered a word since he finished the letter, "Are you alright, my love?"

Jamie shook his head as if he had been in a daze, "Och, aye. I just wish Jenny wouldna be so stubborn. We ken what is comin' and she doesna think it will reach her at Lallybroch, but we ken that the British will be lookin' for us."

Claire nodded, "Yes, unfortunately, we do know what is coming and I can only hope that the Redcoats will realize that we never returned home. Perhaps they will believe that we died at Culloden moor with the rest of the army."

Murtagh scoffed, "I dinna think they will give up so easily, lass, but perhaps it will only take one visit from the Redcoats for Jenny to realize that Lallybroch is no longer a safe haven for her and her family."

Jamie grimaced, "Aye, we can only hope, though I dinna wish for her to go through whatever the Redcoats will do to determine that we are no' there. We must hold them in our hearts and prayers and hope for the best. Jenny is stubborn, but she canna hold off what is comin' for long. I think eventually she will join us or we shall never see her again and it makes my heart ache to think that the latter is what will come to pass."

Claire rubbed his back and could feel the tension in his muscles, "We have done what we can Jamie, she has made her choice and all we can do is hope that she sees the truth of it before it is too late. We will prepare for their arrival and hope that it doesn't take too long before we see them again. Right now we must keep them in our minds as we last saw them, happy and whole and thriving at Lallybroch."

Jamie nodded, "Let's go talk wi' the captain, my wame is unsettled and I am no longer hungry."

Claire and Murtagh nodded and stood at the same time Jamie did. The three of them made their way out of the inn and walked through the center of town toward the docks. The young boy who had brought the letter had disappeared after handing the letter to Jamie and there was now no sign of him. As they rounded the corner at the edge of town, Captain Ardis's ship came into view and the three of them let out a breath of relief at its sight. 

Jamie broke away from Claire, releasing her hand and strode faster toward the ship. Murtagh offered Claire his arm and escorted her toward the dock. Jamie saw the Captain on the dock, shouting orders to his men who were unloading cargo, "Captain, might I have a word wi' ye?"

The captain turned at Jamie's voice and a smile spread across his face, "Seems my messenger found ye, was the letter good news then?"

Jamie shook his head, "Twas a bit of good news, but not quite the news we were expectin'."

The captain furrowed his brow, "Will yer sister no' be joinin' ye then?"

Jamie frowned, "Nah, she willna, but she is sendin' our son wi' one of our tenants, but we dinna ken when he will arrive."

The captain nodded in understanding, "So ye will be stayin' on Stroma a bit longer then?"

Jamie nodded, "Aye, but I came to ask ye if ye will take my kinsman, Murtagh FitzGibbons back to the mainland wi' ye so that he might await the arrival of our son. I'm afraid that if we leave the lad to his own devices he might try to stow away on a ship and God kens where he might end up."

The captain belly laughed, "Sounds as though yer lad is a resourceful sort then. Aye, I will take Murtagh back wi' me, that way he can let me ken when the boy arrives and I can bring them back to Stroma to fetch ye and yer wife, and then we can continue north."

Jamie sighed, "If it wouldna be to much trouble, we would appreciate of ye could do just that. But ye must let me find a way to repay ye for yer kindness, Captain, I canna ask ye to do this out of the goodness of yer heart."

The captain waved his hand in the air, "Tis no' to much trouble, but since ye are offerin', I do make regular trips up north to Unst, if yer wife could see to the health of my crew when we come, I would call us even. Tis vital to have a healthy crew and to have a skilled physician look over them regularly will bring me peace to my mind."

Jamie's eyes brightened, "Aye, I ken she would be happy to offer her services for all that ye are doin' to ensure the survival of our family."

The captain bowed slightly, "If there is nothin' else, Mr. Fraser, I need to get back to this. The shop keepers willna think to kindly of me if their deliveries are delayed any further."

Jamie nodded, "Aye, Murtagh, and I will help since I have already taken up so much of yer time this morning."

Murtagh and Claire had joined him during his conversation with the captain, so Claire released Murtagh and kissed Jamie, "I'll just go back to the inn and get a bit of rest, this baby is beginning to take a lot out of me lately. Come back to the inn when you are finished."

Jamie nodded and gave her a kiss on the temple, "Aye, mo chridhe, I will stay to help the captain until he is ready to make way, then I will return. Go rest and dinna fash about us. I willna be gone long."

Claire gave him a soft smile then turned and strode back in the direction of the inn. She walked slowly and enjoyed the cool morning air and nodded to people she passed by as she made her way back to the inn. As she strode slowly along the road, she noticed an apothecary shop that she had been eager to visit and decided that she could make a short detour and replenish some of her herbs. She opened the shop door and took a deep breath, relishing in the familiar scents of healing. She stepped further into the shop and felt an odd sense of deja vu come over her as she walked around and read the labels of the items around the shop. She had almost made a full circle around the shop when a familiar male voice startled her, "Madonna, so good to see you again."

Claire spun around in shock and would have lost her footing if it hadn't been for Master Raymond reaching out and catching her by the arms, "Careful Madonna, we don't want you to injure yourself in such a delicate state."

Claire's eyes grew wide, "Master Raymond, how on earth are you here?"

He laughed, causing his face to resemble a bullfrog even more so than usual, "Now, Madonna, you do not expect me to reveal all of my secrets do you?"

Claire blushed "No, of course not, but you are the last person I expected to see here."

Master Raymond patted her hand, "I had hoped the stones would reject you and that you would come here. There were so many paths you could have chosen and out of all of them, this was your best option."

Claire furrowed her brow, "I don't understand."

Master Raymond took her by the hand, "Come have a cup of tea and I will explain everything. I have so much to tell and you should be sitting as I reveal the truth of who I am and where or perhaps when I come from."

Claire was speechless but followed him willingly to the back of his shop. He led her through a hidden door into a room quite similar to the one he had in Paris. He poured her a cup of oolong tea and one for himself and directed her to a seat next to the hearth as he took the chair opposite her. 

He blew on his cup of tea and waited for her to take a sip of hers before he spoke. "As you might have guessed, I am a traveler like you, but I am among the first travelers and from a time long ago. Traveling is passed down through genetics and you Madonna are a many times descendent of mine. I have a stronger ability to travel than you do and have lived through many different timelines. I have seen you live along many different paths, most of them devastating to you, Jamie, your children, or all of you. This path you have chosen this time is the best possible choice you could have made, and that my dear is why I am here. It was my hope that the stones would reject you, but they don't' always. On some paths, the stones have allowed you to pass back through and when that has happened you have led very different lives."

Claire sipped her tea but remained quiet. Master Raymond could see that she believed him, but was still confused, "I see that you are unsure how to process what I am telling you. Allow me to tell you what might have happened if you had been permitted to pass through this time."

Claire nodded, "I think perhaps that would help yes. I'm not quite sure what to think of all this, but perhaps you can clarify some of it for me if I knew what would have happened if things had happened differently."

Master Raymond set his cup down on the small table between them. "If you had passed through the stones, Jamie would have returned to Culloden moor to fight. He would have been gravely injured but he would have survived. You would not have known that though and you would have both lived for 20 years apart. You thinking him dead and he would have mourned your loss until you returned to him.

You would have taken up with Mr. Randall again, but you would have had to sacrifice your love for Jamie to do so. He would have demanded that you not look back on your past and never divulge to Jamie's child the truth of its' parentage. You would have lived in a loveless marriage and your whole life would be a lie. Eventually, Mr. Randall would die in a horrific car accident and you would find your freedom, but you still would keep the secret from your child. A death would pull you back to Scotland where you would learn the truth of Jamie's survival, but you would be forced to choose between your child and your lost love. You would choose Jamie with the blessing of your child and would find him living again as an outlaw.

During your 20 year separation, Jamie would have lived like an animal in a cave separated from all he loved for 7 long years. Then he would be arrested and survive in chains in the dungeons of prison for 3 more years until the prison closed. He would be paroled to an estate in England where he would live for another 8 years. He would be blackmailed by one of the daughters and be forced to father her child. When the child began to look like him, he would return to Lallybroch but feel like a ghost in his own home. He would seek what he had lost and remarry, but it would be a loveless marriage and he would feel even less like himself because of it. Eventually, he would escape the marriage by fleeing to Edinburgh and becoming a printer. He would publish an article that would be the cause of you returning to him, but the hardships would not be over upon your return. 

You would endure many threats to your life and marriage before finding yourselves living in early America and being drawn into the revolutionary war. You would both come close to losing your lives and face many more strains on your marriage. You would be kidnapped by a gang of outlaws that would beat and rape you, eventually Jamie would find you and kill them all. You would survive a house fire, but the news would reach your child that you left in the future that the fire had taken your lives. Your child would return and would have to endure abuse at the hands of a madman, the secret that your child keeps would almost tear you and Jamie apart."

Claire put her hand up, "Stop, I don't want to hear any more. That is enough, I am glad that the stones rejected me after hearing all the heartache we would both endure, but how is this option better?"

Master Raymond shook his head, "I cannot tell you that Madonna, your knowledge could change things, and trust me when I say we don't want to change what the future holds for you. But trust that the choices you have already made will keep you safe. I also know that you and Mr. Fraser have fear of encountering a certain monster, but rest assured that it will not happen. Even though in another timeline, Jamie killed Black Jack Randall at Culloden, his fate was set. He still died at the Battle of Culloden, but it was at the hands of another, a MacKenzie to be precise."

Claire shook her head, "That is good news, but I don't want to know anymore if you can't tell me what my future holds. I came into the shop to replenish my stores, can you help me with that?"

Master Raymond stood and offered her his hand, "Of course, come my child. I have everything you need, but I do have one more piece of advice that I pray you to follow."

Claire quirked a brow at him as she allowed him to help her to her feet, "What is that?"

Master Raymond turned to her, "If you do not take it easy, the birth of this child could kill you. You must listen to your husband and go on bed rest at 7 months gestation. If you heed my warning, the birth will be long and tiring, but you and the child will survive."

Claire's eyes grew big, "Will the birth of this child damage me?"

Master Raymond patted her hand, "Not if you go on bed rest, you will have many more children if you listen to your body with each one. Now come, let's get those herbs you require to keep your redman whole."


	7. Chapter 7

After leaving Master Raymond's apothecary shop, Claire made her way slowly back to the inn and up to the room she shared with Jamie. She slumped on the bed, lost in thoughts, a thousand things running through her mind after what Master Raymond had revealed to her. She knew she needed to tell Jamie, but what exactly could she tell him. Master Raymond had revealed what could have happened to both of them had the stones accepted her, but nothing that could or would truly affect their lives now. The most important thing he had told her was about her pregnancy, this one, and any future pregnancies she might have.

She shook her head and tried to calm her racing mind as she laid back on the bed and willed herself to get some rest before Jamie returned from the docks. It had only seemed like minutes that her eyes had been closed when she heard the familiar sound of the door opening. She peeled her eyes open and looked over toward the door, noticing that the light in the room had shifted quite a bit since she had laid down and closed her eyes. She propped herself up on her elbow and watched as Jamie made his way from the door over toward the hearth.

In her haste to return to their room and sort through her thoughts, she had neglected to tend to the fire and now the room was filled with a chill that reached her bones. Jamie poked about in the ashes, searching for any lasting embers. A sigh escaped him when he found a few, then gently laid a few logs on top of them. He leaned far into the hearth and gently blew on the embers to help ignite the fresh wood he had stacked above them. When the wood started to crackle, Jamie backed out of the hearth and brushed his hands off on the knees of his breeks. Before he stood, he turned his head to look over his shoulder, catching Claire staring at him in awed appreciation.

He smiled softly at her, "Did ye sleep well, mo nighean donn?"

Claire nodded and stretched like a cat, "Oh, yes. It was so quiet and peaceful that I got the best rest I've had in a long time."

Jamie quirked his brow at her as he stood and strode across the floor to sit next to her on the bed, "Is that so, should I take it that ye would like to sleep on yer own from now on then?"

Claire giggled and leaned over to kiss his shoulder, "No, you should not take it that way, honestly I am still bone tired and don't feel like I have gotten any rest at all."

Jamie leaned back on the pillow and pulled her down to rest her head on his chest, "Then perhaps ye should rest a bit more, mo chridhe."

Claire shook her head and pushed up to rest her forearms on his chest and or chin on her arms, "I will, but first I need to tell you something."

Jamie frowned, "Whatever ye have to tell me sounds serious, are ye alright, Claire, is it the bairn?"

Claire shook her head, "No, both of us are doing fine, but I ran into someone from our past today."

Jamie looked at her in alarm as he made to sit up. But she pushed him back down, "Not to worry, my love. This person doesn't mean us any harm. I went into that apothecary shop that we saw when we first arrived here. I figured it was time to replenish my store of herbs now that Fergus will be joining us. Anyway, while I was there I ran into Master Raymond."

Jamie's frown deepened, "Master Raymond, from Paris?"

Claire nodded, "Yes, the very same. Anyway, he told me something that was quite unnerving. I actually stopped him before he finished because hearing it was making me physically ill."

Jamie reached out and stroked her hair, "What is it that he told ye?"

Claire looked him in the eye and recounted everything that Master Raymond had told her of the lives they would have lived if the stones had allowed her to pass back through to her own time. Jamie nodding and gasping in all the right places, even frowning when she had mentioned him remarrying. Eventually, she got to the part where she was ready to leave Master Raymond's shop. "But then he stopped me and said that I need to take it easy with this pregnancy. He said that if I continue to work past my 7th month that I will lose this child as well as my own life."

Jamie furrowed his brow in thought, "Did he say anything else, anything that could help us to make decisions for our future?"

Claire shook her head, "No, he was unwilling to tell me more. He said that if I were to know what lies ahead of us, I might make different choices that would have a dire effect on our future."

Jamie made a disapproving sound in his throat as he continued to stroke her hair. "Well, at least we ken how to keep ye and the bairn safe. It also means that we must make it to Unst in the next 3 months. I dinna wish for ye to be on a ship facing dangerous seas when ye should be resting comfortably in a bed. We will leave for Unst as soon as Murtagh returns wi' Fergus."

Claire nodded as she leaned down and placed a kiss on his sternum, "Yes, my love. Nothing is more important than the well being of our family now."

Jamie leaned up and kissed her forehead, "Nah, tis no' and soon we will all be together again. I watched as Murtagh left wi' Captain Ardis this evening. I expect the two of them will be back soon."

Claire smiled softly at the thought of holding her son in her arms again, then furrowed her brow in thought. "That reminds me, did Captain say anything else, did you ask him how we could repay him for his kindness?"

Jamie nodded, "Aye, I did. He asked if ye would be willing to see to the health of his men when he visits Unst. I told him that I was sure ye would be happy to do that after all he has done and is continuing to do for us."

Claire raised her head off her hands, "Of course, that is the least I can do. Captain Ardis has been a Godsend and we wouldn't be here on Stroma if it weren't for him."

* * *

The next week went by in a flash as they patiently awaited the arrival of Fergus and Murtagh. Early on the morning of the 8th day, the couple was awoken by a pounding on their door, "Mr. and Mrs. Fraser, please ye must wake up. Captain Ardis is docked and is awaitin' yer arrival to shove off."

Jamie scrambled from the bed and pulled his breeks on before yanking the door open, nearly ripping it from its hinges, "What is the rush, lad?"

The boy folded over struggling to catch his breath, "Captain Ardis, says that ye must make haste, there is no time to waste. The British were in town yesterday so they left the mainland in the middle of the night. He doesna think they spotted his ship slipping away, but he doesna wish to wait and find out. Yer boy and kinsman are safely aboard, but ye must hurry."

Claire had jumped out of bed as soon as Jamie had and was dressed and collecting their meager belongings by the time Jamie closed the door and turned around. She tossed his shirt at him, "Get dressed, I'll gather the rest of this. We have come too far for them to catch us now."

Jamie nodded and pulled his shirt on and then his jacket and boots, gathering everything that Claire hadn't already picked up into his arms. Claire had spread her tartan on the bed and was placing everything in the middle of it, "What are ye doin' lass?"

Claire turned back to him with an exasperated look upon her face, "I'm making a bindle, it will be easier to carry everything, now pass me all of that and then you can help me tie it shut."

Jamie didn't have a clue what a bindle was, but handed her his remaining clothing and sporan. As she packed everything tightly in the center, he looped his sword belt around his waist and secured it. With her nod, he took two opposite corners of the tartan tied them together, then repeated the process with the remaining corners. Claire bent down to pick up the rather large bundle, but Jamie pushed her hand away, "Master Raymond said to take it easy, I'll carry that. Ye just see to gettin' yer self down those stairs in one piece."

Claire didn't even bother to argue, knowing he was right and remembering Master Raymond's warning to listen to her husband. She took one last look around the room to ensure that they weren't leaving anything behind, then opened the door and followed Jamie out. They walked as fast as they could down the stairs without causing a commotion and made their way out of the inn and down the street as fast as they could. Ten minutes later, they were standing on the deck of Captain Ardis's ship and watching as the land receded away from them. As Claire was preparing to turn around and put Stroma in her past, two gangling arms wrapped tightly around her middle. She looked down and recognized the arms right away and turned around, "Oh, Fergus, I am so glad you made it, are you alright? The journey wasn't too rough, was it?"

Fergus shook his head emphatically, a broad smile stretched across his face, "No, Milady. It was rather uneventful, at least until we reached the coast and Murtagh spotted the redcoats."

Claire grimaced at the thought and discreetly examined his face and arms for any injuries. Jamie reached out and placed a hand on Fergus's shoulder, "Tis good to have ye back, lad."

Claire could see the barely contained tears in Jamie's eyes so she reached out and pulled him into their embraces. He buried his face in her curls, wrapped one arm around her waist and one around Fergus's shoulder. Murtagh stepped on deck and saw the small family huddled together and walked over to embrace them all, happy they were all together and safe. After a moment Jamie looked up to the heavens and thanked God for allowing him to hold his family in his arms.


	8. Chapter 8

Since it was nearing summer, the weather was gradually warming up and the seas had begun to calm. However, Jamie's stomach would never be happy with any type of sea voyage, no matter the length, destination, or relative ease in which the ship seemed to slice through the water. ~~~~

As was expected, he spent most of his time leaning over the stern railing and heaving the meager contents of his stomach into the sea below or lying miserably in his bunk with the pallor of his skin the color of a rotten fish.

Thankfully Claire's experience on the ship was far different than what she had gone through when they had sailed to France and she was pregnant with Faith. It seemed that the baby she was carrying this time was lulled into a quiet peace while they journeyed north toward Unst. 

As the days wore on and Jamie didn't improve, Claire began to worry that he may actually become ill. He had stopped trying to eat when everything he attempted to swallow just came right back up and he had lost enough weight that it was evident even to the untrained eye. Though neither Claire nor Jamie wanted to tempt fate by making an unplanned stop, Claire knew that Jamie needed to spend some time on land or he wouldn't survive long enough to step foot on Unst.

Murtagh took it upon himself to convince the captain to stop at the next bit of land they reached. Luckily the captain was willing to make the necessary changes to his schedule and was even able to pick up an extra bit of cargo when they docked at Sumburgh.

It took Jamie three days before his healthy pink color returned to his cheeks and his lasting illness caused Claire to second guess their initial plan to sail all the way to Unst. But after some careful cajoling, Jamie made her realize that Unst was still their best bet for their survival and freedom. He also reminded her that she was already almost five months pregnant and they still had three weeks of sailing left until they would reach the island where Unst was located. However, they did take advantage of their inadvertent layover to replenish their supplies and Claire was able to find some peppermint in a small apothecary shop. She hoped that it would help to ease Jamie's stomach if his seasickness began to plague him again. 

Once everyone was back on board, Claire urged Jamie to keep his eyes on the land. Now that they had crossed the channel, the land would remain in sight for the remainder of the voyage and it was Claire's hope that the sight of land alone, would be enough to keep Jamie's stomach from turning on him again. 

Luckily Claire had been right in her assumption that the sight of land would help Jamie's stomach to remain calm and since he wasn't plagued with constant vomiting, they were able to enjoy their time on the ship. Since neither of them had much to do while on board, they took several strolls from bow to stern, logging many miles as they walked and chatted about everything under the sun. It was during one of these long walks near the end of their journey that Claire suddenly stopped in her tracks and grabbed her stomach. 

Jamie turned and furrowed his brow at the stunned expression on his wife's face, "Sassenach, what is it, is it the bairn?"

Claire focused her eyes on Jamie and nodded as a soft smile slowly spread across her face. She reached a hand out for him and he quickly returned to her side, "Jamie, it is the baby, he's kicking and I think you might be able to feel it from the outside now."

Jamie's eyes went wide as his brow rose to his hairline. He gave Claire his hand and she moved it over her stomach until she felt the telltale flutter of an oncoming assault by their tiny child. Jamie held his hand still and patiently waited for his child to make itself known. It only took a few minutes before he felt a healthy strong kick, right in the center of his palm. He suddenly dropped to his knees as he knelt in front of her and cupped the small roundness between both of his hands.

He leaned in close and began whispering reassuring and loving words and phrases in Gáidhlig to their second child. Claire placed her hands over the top of Jamie's hands and looked lovingly down at him as he made promises to their unborn child.

* * *

By the middle of July, the redcoats had already made several appearances at Lallybroch in search of Jamie and Claire, and every time Jenny assured them that she had not seen hide nor hair of her brother since he left to join the battle over a year before. This time, however, they were led by a new commander who wouldn't leave without having searched the entire estate for the missing Jacobite traitor. 

They stormed through the house, slashing anything in their paths, destroying dishes, and overturning furniture. While they were searching they found the priests hole and the hidden root cellar. Ian hugged Jenny tightly and they both silently thanked the lord that Jamie and Claire had not returned to Lallybroch when they decided to escape the last battle and save themselves. Jenny was beginning to believe that Jamie had been right when he tried to warn her of what was to come, but now it was too late for them to leave. If they just up and disappeared now, surely the redcoats would have more reason to suspect them of being Jacobite supporters and would track them all the way to where Jamie was hiding.

She felt guilty and foolish for ignoring Jamie's plea to leave Lallybroch behind and even though it would mean enduring more hardships at the hands of the British, she wasn't willing to sacrifice her brother's safety and life by inadvertently leading the British right to his doorstep. She and Ian would bide their time until they could make an escape unbeknownst to the British soldiers. But eventually, they would make their way to the northern isles where Jenny knew without a doubt that Jamie would be awaiting them with open arms.

When the commander of the patrol demanded that his men take Ian into custody for questioning, Jenny finally broke down and admitted to herself that it was time to come up with a plan.

She clutched Maggie in her arms as wee Jamie latched onto her leg and together they watched as Ian was violently shoved into the back of an enclosed wagon by three redcoat soldiers.

They stood frozen in that spot for nearly an hour before Mrs. Crook tentatively approached her side. "Mistress Murray, tis no' good for any of ye to remain standin' here. Come into the house and fill yer bellies. Master Murray wouldna wish for ye to starve yer self or worry over him. He doesna have any information for the soldiers to force him to confess. They willna have any choice but to let him go once they are finished questioning him."

Jenny sighed and nodded as she allowed Mrs. Crook to take Maggie from her arms. "Aye, I ken yer right, but I just feel so helpless. Jamie kent what was coming and tried to warn me. But my damned Fraser stubbornness prevented me from listening to reason. I didna expect it to get this bad so soon after the battle."

Mrs. Crook nodded in affirmation as she followed Jenny into the house, "Aye, it is bad and I dinna think our circumstances will improve any time soon. The redcoats seem convinced that we are hiding the laird and I dinna think they will give up their search until they find him or create reasons to see the rest of us condemned to pay for his part in the rebellion."

Jenny huffed as she walked into the dining room and put wee Jamie in his chair. "I hate to admit it, but I think you might be right about that. I think it's time that we start making ready to travel. We need to get all of our affairs in order so that when Mr. Murray returns, we will be ready to go. Lallybroch is my home, but without my family to fill it, Lallybroch just becomes a dwelling. It's time to say goodbye to the life we have lived thus far and look toward our future. I'll have Rabbie carry a message to the tenants, informing them of our decision and they can decide for themselves what they want to do, but none of them will be bound to us any longer."


	9. Chapter 9

While Ian was being held by the British, Jenny did everything in her power to prepare for their imminent departure. Rabbie delivered the message to each of the tenants and one by one they were summoned to the big house to hear for themselves about the Murray's plans to leave Lallybroch. Several of the tenants were in agreement with Jenny's plans, having already experienced a bit of the aftermath of the final battle. However, many of them had decided that they would seek their future in the new world. Jenny bid many of her friends goodbye as they packed what belongings they could carry with them into wagons, stopped at Lallybroch to inform her of their plans then made their way west toward the coast.

However, there were a few holdouts, those who lived deeper in the woods and had not yet encountered the rath of the British patrols. The handful of them had decided to remain in their homes, daring anyone to push them out. Jenny gave them her blessing as well as a bit of coin and free rein on the potato fields, with the hope that they could be the few to defy the odds and remain steadfast in their homeland.

A fortnight had passed by the time Ian was returned home, a bit battered but overall, none the worse for wear. When the British soldiers dumped him off of the wagon, he was without his wooden leg, so one of the tenants immediately set to work to carve him a new one. Jenny rushed to his side and with the help of Mrs. Crook she got him up on his one good leg. She conducted a quick examination of him and upon finding no obvious wounds, the two women ushered him inside. 

Once in the parlor and comfortable on the settee, Jenny knelt in front of him and wept. He stroked her hair, trying to calm her so they could discuss what had happened in the other's absence. Finally, after several emotional minutes, Jenny lifted her head and looked into her husband's eyes, "We can't stay here, Jamie was right."

Ian nodded, "Aye, from what I overheard while I was locked in my cell, the British willna stop lookin' for Jamie and Claire. They were too well known to just let slide through their fingers. They vowed to do whatever it takes to find them, even going so far as burnin' Lallybroch to the ground wi' us in it."

Jenny's eyes went wide and she gasped, "Do ye truly think they would do such a thing?"

Ian quirked his brow, "Would ye truly put it past them, no' to?"

Jenny sighed in defeat, "No, I wouldna. I suppose it is a good thing that I have taken this time to prepare to leave."

Ian smirked, "Och, aye? What have ye been up to then?"

Jenny stood up and took the seat next to him, taking both of his hands in hers as she began to explain everything she had done in preparation to leave. When she was finished regaling him with her plan, he shook his head and brought her hands up to his lips to press a tender kiss over her wedding ring, "Yer a brave wee thing. When do we leave?"

Jenny sat up a bit taller, "Well, ye look a bit thin, so I want ye to get a bit of rest and some food in ye before we set out on our journey. It will take us much longer than it did for Claire and Jamie, wi' the bairns wi' us, but I figure that if we leave in a week, we can reach the coast within a month."

Ian nodded, "Aye, I believe it can be done. But what of the tenants?"

Jenny chuckled, "Most of them have already gone, I have spoken to the rest and those that have decided to stay have promised to do what they can to see Lallybroch cared for, should we ever find a way to return."

* * *

Once they had arrived on Unst, they found it was rather simple to find lodging and work. There happened to be an elderly woman who had been recently widowed that was in need of help on her farm. She was all too happy when the small family showed up at her door and she invited them in for a cup of afternoon tea and bannocks. As they sat around her long dining room table and regaled her with the story of war and survival, she was awestruck at their fortitude and desire to survive, despite all of the odds stacked against them. 

As she stood to go fetch more bannocks, Claire reached out and put a hand over hers, "I know this might seem a bit presumptuous, but the reason for our visit, was not to simply share our story with you. We were told when we arrived at the tavern that you might be in need of help."

The woman sat back down and looked at each of their faces skeptically, "Aye, I am and from what ye have told me, I could use the help of each and every one of ye. However, I canna pay ye, I dinna have much coin, but if ye would be amenable to a trade, I think we could strike a bargain."

Claire beamed at her, "I think we would all be grateful if you would be happy with that arrangement."

The old woman patted Claire's hand. "This is a large house, my Hector built it for me some years ago wi' the intention of fillin' it wi' our bairns, but alas we werena blessed wi' even a one of them. I would be grateful if the lot of ye would make yer selves at home here, help me wi' the chores and such and in turn, ye let me adopt ye as my own family."

Jamie chuckled, "I think that would suit us all just fine."

The old woman beamed at them, "Well then, ye must call me by my first name, Faith."

Jamie and Claire's eyes went wide as they gaped at one another. Faith noticed and furrowed her brow, "Is somethin' wrong?"

Claire swung her gaze back to Faith and shook her head, "Oh, no I am so sorry, it's just that your name brought up some painful memories of a daughter we lost while living in Paris, her name was Faith."

Faith nodded in understanding, "Awe, I see. How strange, I was born in Paris in L'Hopital de Anges. I was an orphan for the first few months of my life, then a kindly couple adopted me and brought me to Unst to raise me. My Da was French and my Mam was a Scot, strangest pairing, ye ever saw."

Claire's mouth dropped open and she began to study the woman's face more closely. Then she shook the thought from her head, it was a ridiculous notion and there was no point in allowing her mind to go down that path. But when she turned and looked at Jamie, she saw the same wonder on his face as he studied Faith's face. She reached out and placed her hand over his, "Jamie, why don't you take Murtagh and Fergus out to the wagon to fetch our things, I'll help Faith clean up."

Jamie turned his attention to his wife and nodded, "Aye, we can do that."

Claire looked back at Faith, "Would you mind showing us where you would like for us to sleep so the lads know where they can put our things?"

Faith nodded as she stood and started toward the door, "Aye, just follow me."

* * *

By the end of the week, Ian was anxious to leave Lallybroch. The patrols had picked up and the British had already returned to Lallybroch twice since returning him to his home. Their second visit, just the day before had resulted in slashed tapestries in the upper hall, overturned furniture and the stew that Mrs. Crook had been preparing for their supper had been tossed across the kitchen, spilling the contents all over the newly scrubbed floor. 

Ian knew that with their absence, Lallybroch would surely suffer even greater atrocities, but there was nothing that could be done for it. The fact was that their family was more important than the house or land and in order to keep everyone safe, they needed to heed Jamie's warning and get as far away from Lallybroch as was possible. So after dusk on the seventh night, the family loaded everything they would be taking with them into a wagon. Jenny, Mrs. Crook, and the children rode in the wagon as Ian led the way on his horse. 

They made slow progress, keeping off the roads and remaining in the dense forest, away from any possible British patrols. They traveled all night long and knew it would be many more before they were out of harm's way, but just before dawn they found a small hidden cave in which they could hide during the daylight hours.


End file.
